Of Pups Homes and Hearts
by WogglebugLoveProductions
Summary: The Pound Puppies set on a cross-country journey to return a lost puppy to his family. During the adventures Barkerville and Nose Marie end up also discovering how much they mean to each other. Based off of the 1985 pilot movie.
1. Chapter 1

The sun had just risen on a very beautiful sunny day in New York, shining down upon the city, its buildings, people, and animals.

In the City Dog Pound where all dogs who are lost or homeless are cared for, and hopefully at some point, placed in a loving home. Within this Pound there lives a band of very special dogs who call themselves The Pound Puppies. They are caring, compassionate, and dedicated to finding homes for as many puppies as possible.

Among them is, Barkerville, a fine English bulldog with fuzzy brown fur, and he wore a collar that sported a red velvet bow-tie; he also sported a monocle over his left eye, and always wore a black silk top hat. He was the chief coordinator of the Pound Puppies, which meant he was the one who was in charge of finding the best homes for the most puppies.

Today he thought about how much he loved his job, knowing that it made so many puppies as well as people happy, most of those people being children. He sat at a desk in a comfortable sized office, making special phone calls and briskly writing down names and addresses and carefully checking records.

After a while, he began to feel the need to be outside, as many dogs did. So after carefully reviewing everything he had just accomplished, he stood and took hold of his walking stick and left the office.

On his way out, he noticed that Cooler, Scrounger, Howler, and two other dogs were seated around a table and a lively card game was going on.

As he approached them, Scrounger, who was Cooler's best friend, noticed him and said, "Hey, Barky! Would you care to join us in a little poker?"

"No thanks, chaps," he said as he paused before their table. "I'm going for a gentle stroll."

"Suit yourself," said Cooler as he selected another card. "Just hope you'll be back before Nabbit gets back."

Barkerville hoped the same thing. He waved as he passed by them, hearing conversation amongst them.

He sneaked out carefully through a back door and into the fresh air and sunshine. He walked along gently with his cane in front of him as he headed to the place where most dogs like to be when they go for a morning walk, to the park.

He soon reached Central Park where he was greeted by the sights and sounds of many people and dogs enjoying themselves. He smiled as it seemed a perfect day.

After he had walked around for a little while, he came across a slightly larger dark brown dog who was sitting still, tied to a tree with a leash, and had a rather sad look on his face.

Feeling rather concerned, Barkerville went over to him and said, "I say, old man, what seems to be the trouble?"

The big dog gave a low moan and said, "I want those wieners, over there," he pointed to a hot dog stand that was ten feet from them. "But I can't reach them."

Barkerville thought for a minute, then said, "Well, if you really want them I know how to get them for you."

The bigger dog's expression brightened as Barkerville went over the vendor and crouched on his hind legs with his forepaws out, and the dark haired man standing there smiled and reached inside of the vendor and gave him a bright red hot dog.

He ran quickly back to the big dog tied to a tree and placed it kindly into his mouth.

"Gee, thank you," he said as he ate happily on the wiener.

Barkerville smiled and tipped his hat, then he continued on his stroll feeling really good now.

After walking around for another hour, he noticed Dabney Nabbit, the city dog catcher's truck parked just outside of the park. So, he crept quietly to the back of it and climbed unseen into the open door.

Once inside, he noticed a small, fluffy brown and white pup with big eyes and floppy ears huddled in a corner and trembling in fear.

He looked so pitiful, so Barkerville went over to him and gently stroked his fur as he said, "Tell me, little chap, why are you so frightened?"

"I'm lost," the pup said, close to tears. "I used to live with a family that had a little boy named Kyle, but a few days ago I wandered from home, and when I found my way back, they had all moved away, I don't know where they are anymore."

Tears streamed down his furry cheeks. "This scary man just caught me in a net and threw me in here. I don't know where he's taking me."

Barkerville wiped away the pup's tears. "He is taking us to the Pound," he explained. "That is where I live and have many friends there, and they will soon become your friends and we will all find out where your family has moved and somehow reunite you with them."

"You promise?" the pup sniffled.

"I promise. It is our job," Barkerville said sincerely. "So you have nothing to my fear my little friend, I'm here for you."

Just then, they heard the door open and close as Nabbit got into the truck and drove off to the pound.

Barkerville stayed close to the little pup, whose name he learned on the way was Rugby, the whole way there.

They soon arrived back at the pound, where Nabbit turned them both loose and Barkerville quickly found the rest of the Pound Puppies who were all gathered together.

"Ahem!" Barkerville said as he got their attention. "This is Rugby, whom I found on my stroll in the park. He is lost since the family he belongs to has moved. I will now try to find where they are," he said as Rugby stood shyly behind him.

Barkerville then left them and went straight to his office where he got out his phone books and maps and with them discovered that Rugby's family, the Patersons, had moved from New York to Ohio a week ago. With this information he returned to his friends.

"I'm so sorry they moved when you weren't there," said Nose Marie, a feisty female bloodhound, to Rugby. "You must really miss them."

"Yes, I do," said Rugby. "Kyle used to take me for walks and give me treats. He always played with me and took good care of me. I miss him the most."

"Ahem!" Barkerville got their attention as he entered the room. "I've just found out Rugby's family lives in Ohio, which is hundreds of miles from here."

"Oh my!" said Nose Marie. "He shouldn't have to make the journey alone. I will go with him, my nose will be of much use on the way."

"I shall go also," said Barkerville. "I know where our destination is, and shall guide your nose, my dear Nose Marie."

Howler gave a low pitched howl, for he could only speak in howls, to show that he wanted to come with them."

"So, that settles it then," said Cooler in his deep New York accent. "Barkerville, Howler, Nose, and myself will go on a journey to find Rugby's family. We'll start out tomorrow morning. Now, we should prepare for the journey."


	2. Chapter 2

Barkerville, Cooler, Scrounger, Howler, and Nose Marie exited the pound through the back gate early the next morning with Rugby in tow.

"Well, the coast is all clear," Cooler observed. "So where do we go first?"

"I think we should go this way," said Scrounger, pointing in Northwesterly direction. "After all, isn't it always supposed to be left to right?"

Howler gave a loud howl of disagreement as he pointed in the opposite direction.

"Now, now, fellas!" said Cooler. "Let Barkerville settle the argument. After all, he is the one who really knows where we're supposed to go."

Everyone turned their attention onto the English bulldog. He smiled and said, "Why I believe we should leave it to Miss Nose Marie to point us in the right direction. She does, after all, have the best sniffer in all of the pound."

Nose Marie looked flattered and responded, "At your service."She put her nose to the ground and took a long sniff. "We should go this way," she said pointing in the direction close to the one Scrounger had suggested.

Meanwhile just a few blocks away, Arnold Fisk the garbage man and the son of the mayor was going about his daily routine of gathering up bags full of garbage out of trash cans and alleyways and picking up dumpsters with his mighty truck and dumping the contents into the back of the truck.

Arnold hated his job, he hated garbage, he always did for it was so yucky, but now he hated it more than ever for just a few weeks ago his dear old daddy had promised him a whole new career as the supervisor of the city pound and never mind about laying off old Bigelow for it. However, just as he was about to move in, Bigelow had caught the two most notorious dog-nappers in New York, and coincidentally he and his daddy had been chasing after Bigelow at the same time after he had collided with their vehicle with the intention of having him arrested. Unfortunately for him though when Police chief Williams had declared Bigelow a hero his daddy the mayor had jumped at the opportunity of sharing the credit with him and had given him his job back.

Arnold had been furious! He felt so betrayed, and by his own daddy nonetheless! He swore to him he would never speak to him again, or at least not until he came around and kept his promise to give him a new and better career.

"It's all the fault of those mangy pound puppies!" he swore under his breath as flies buzzed around his head and he dumped a particularly heavy dumpster upside down and emptied it into his truck. "I swear on my life I will get even with them if it's the last thing I do!"

He put the dumpster back down with a very loud bang as though venting his rage out on it. Then as he was driving away he spotted from his high perch in his seat at the wheel of the enormous truck a few specks out of the corner of his eye. On looking closer he discovered those little specks were none other than the very same pound puppies who had lost him his new career before it ever go started. He instantly saw the perfect chance for revenge. These dogs had obviously escaped from the pound and if he could catch them and bring them back to the pound then his daddy would likely see that he was really the one who was deserving of the job of the pound supervisor.

The Pound Puppies had been roaming the streets for some time now and the effects of wandering without incident were now beginning to get to them.

"Have we got to anywhere yet?" Scrounger asked wearily.

"We must put our trust in the Nose," said Barkerville. "Remember the Nose knows."

"Well, what scents are you picking up now?" asked Scrounger to Nose Marie.

She sniffed at the air and replied, "Very strong... something very strong."

"You mean like a cat?" asked Scrounger hopefully, he liked the thought of being able to chase a furry feline.

"No... it's... much stronger than a cat," she replied. "In fact it's making my nose itch!"

"You know, I smell something, too," said Cooler.

"So do I," added Scrounger. "Hey, I'd know that scent anywhere! It's the smell of garbage!"

"P. U!" Howler howled.

"Uh oh!" muttered Nose Marie. "When there's garbage there must be a garbage man close by, and the garbage man is..."

"We know, Arnold Fisk, the mayor's son!" exclaimed Cooler. "And here he comes now!"

Sure enough they saw the garbage truck driving down the road ahead of them with the unshaven greasy haired man behind the wheel.

"Why do I get the feeling we aren't glad to see him?" asked Scrounger nervously.

"Probably because he is leaning out of the window with a net like the one Nabbit has and he obviously wants to catch us to prove to his dear daddy that he can be the pound supervisor," returned Cooler.

"Then let's make a run for it!" shouted Scrounger.

"Right behind you, chaps!" exclaimed Barkerville as he dashed after them.

"I won't let you get away! You mangy mutts!" yelled Arnold as he sped up the garbage truck and zoomed after the pound puppies with the catcher's net billowing in the wind.

They were chased through the streets as cars screeched to a halt as they passed them by. While the dogs were running as fast as they could, Arnold was also driving the garbage truck almost to the speed limit of it. He zoomed after them past many well known buildings and places around New York, and as he zoomed towards Central Park, two motorcyclists zoomed out in front of him and he let out a cry of horror as he swerved the truck sideways to avoid hitting them and the back of it rammed into a fire hydrant and ripped it from its station on the ground sending water spraying up into the air.

In his shock he backed the truck up into a a telephone pole and crashed loudly into it as the rear end of the truck was turned upwards and he yelled as he slammed face first into the windshield as the truck fell on its head and piles upon piles of garbage was dumped out of it and right on top of him. He crawled out of the door after managing to get it open and was instantly covered from head to foot in filth and garbage.

"I hate garbage!" he shouted loud enough for all of the city to hear.

The Pound Puppies ran until they were all out of breath. They stopped at a curb in an alleyway where they looked to see they were safe and they rested.

"Oh! If I ever see him again it will be too soon!" declared Cooler.

"I couldn't agree with you more, Cooler old boy!" agreed Barkerville heartily.

"Well, what do we do now?" asked Scrounger. "I'm hungry!" he complained as he rubbed his stomach.

They knew Scrounger was almost always hungry but now they were all quite hungry and agreed they should try to find some place to get something to eat.

They walked on for a little while before Nose Marie sniffed the air and exclaimed, "I smell food!" She sniffed again. "It smells like pizza! There must be a restaurant nearby!"

Now hungrier than ever they followed Nose Marie's lead that led them straight to a small restaurant which had a sign above it which read "Antolino's Best Pizza Place".

"You think they'll let us in?" asked Scrounger hopefully.

"I'm willing to bet on it," Barkerville assured him. "As most Italians I've known are very friendly."

They stood at the door and began barking and whimpering until they finally heard footsteps coming up to them as well as a deep voice humming a tune.

Soon the door was opened and they were greeted by a tall and heavyset man with a thick handlebar mustache and curly black hair wearing an apron. He smiled kindly at them and looked at them with warm brown eyes.

"Why, hello there poochies!" he exclaimed jovially. "What brings you here, eh? Why I bet you must be hungry, no? Come inside, I get you something to eat. How's about a nice pepperoni pizza pie?"

They all wagged their tails and panted their tongues in agreement. The generous man led them inside to a warm and neatly kept clean kitchen and he set about making them their meal, shaping and kneading and tossing and flattening the dough and then covering it with sauce and cheese and pepperoni and then stashing it into a very hot oven. Within minutes a timer went off and he took the pizza out of the oven and sliced it into individual pieces for all of them.

"I say, this is really quite good! I've never had anything like it before!" declared Barkerville as he ate his slice.

"Now I see why humans like this stuff so much!" Scrounger added with his mouth rather full.

As they were thus eating happily they heard the sound of a cell phone ringing and the warmhearted Italian owner of the restaurant took the phone out of his apron pocket and spoke into it.

"Hello? Oh, hey Mama! Good to here from you! I will be there to meet you at the train station real soon, okay? I'm so glad you could come visit me all the way from Ohio!"

The Pound puppies overheard the conversation, and now they knew what their next course of action was to be to get to their destination.


	3. Chapter 3

The train station seemed filled to capacity as the pound puppies found the platform which would lead them to the train destined for Ohio. People huddled against each other, asking questions, calling out names, and holding the hands of children.

The dogs watched as some of the folks gathered greeted the passengers as they disembarked the train which came in just now, this including the chef from the Italian restaurant they just came from as he embraced and kissed the cheeks of his elderly mother.

"All aboard!" called out the conductor as he routed the new passengers into the train for the next round trip.

Cooler, Howler, Barkerville, Nose Marie, and Scrounger quickly took their chance to sneak through the crowds and climb into the car of the train in which the passenger's pets went as this seemed to be the most logical action to take.

"Allow me to assist you, my dear Nose Marie," said Barkerville as he chivalrously took her paw and gently helped her to step up into the car.

"Why thank you, Barky," she said, blushing slightly.

Once they were aboard they noticed there were other animals in the car with them.

"How do you do?" chattered a small monkey wearing a red jacket and tipping a tiny black top hat.

"Buenos Dios, amigos!" said a Mexican chihuahua.

"Ja! Nphbet!" said a tall gray dog with a Russian accent which looked like a mix of a husky and a wolf.

"Greetings fellow travelers!" said a small yellow canary bird standing on a perch in a cage. "You two look like a cute couple!" it said addressing Barkerville and Nose Marie.

"We're not a couple, we're just friends really," said Nose Marie, blushing again.

"How do you do, sir?" replied Barkerville as he shook the little monkey by the hand. "Might I be correct in assuming you are a primate of a Capuchin breed from Africa?"

The monkey chattered bemusedly. "Yes, I am," he said. "I belong to a man who plays piano and I like to dance on it while he plays and I am very good at it, too. We travel from place to place to get an audience for our act."

"I travel with my owner from place to place too," said the chihuahua. "My owner is a Hispanic guy who likes to gamble a lot, in fact I am the only thing he hasn't bet on yet. I guess that means I mean a lot to him."

"As for me," said the gray wolf-hound. "I was a good old sled dog back in the old country, and now my master has come to America to live and I don't know what use I'll be to him then."

"You'll always be useful to him as long as you keep him company, old man," said Barkerville kindly.

"For my part I am a songstress of sorts," crooned the canary proudly. "I've traveled the world with my mistress and sang grand opera with her."

"Do you really?" asked Barkerville intrigued.

"Well, actually I help her rehearse her songs and I give her the right pitch she needs, though I have met a few royalties and nobility in my my days." the canary explained while preening her feathers.

"I happen to be most interested in opera," said Barkerville, "and the grander the better."

"Do you like _Eli, Eli_?" asked the canary. "I know this one by heart."

"Certainly I do," replied Barkerville. "If you please?"

The canary began singing in a sweet and cheerful melody. The other animals all listened captivated.

Soon the train's whistle blew and they felt the steady rhythm of the train's wheels moving along the tracks, and the chugging of the engine.

After a while Scrounger said, "Hey, I'm hungry! Has anyone got any food?"

"Sorry, amigo," said the chihuahua. "I ate my last biscuit before I got on."

"If you want, I could go sniff out some food from around here and sneak it back here," said Nose Marie.

The others eagerly agreed to this, especially Scrounger, and so Nose Marie crept out of the hatch door in the wall of the compartment and slinked along the corridor. She hadn't gone far when she smelled some familiar smells. One was that of a cat, and the other was a much more unclean and sinister smell, and it was one which she had long ago thought she would never smell again. She desperately hoped it wasn't what she knew it was, but she knew her nose would never lie to her.

She followed the smell and it led her to the last compartment in the back of the train, where the smell became more unbearable, and her suspicions were confirmed for there she saw two figures; one was very skinny and wore a flat red cap that nearly covered his eyes, and the other was very large and round and wore ripped pants. These two were none other than Flack and Tubbs, the two dog thieves who had caused the pound puppies a lot of trouble.

They had once dog-napped Violet Vanderfeller and when they had returned her to her rich family they had also succeeded in their plan of also getting the two crooks caught by Police Chief Williams, and as far as any of them had known they had been in jail since then, but now it seemed they had somehow managed to escape and from what she smelled in the bag next to them they had also turned to cat burglary. She hid herself behind a corner and listened for any information they would give her.

Tubbs suddenly sneezed. "Tubbs, be quiet!" hissed Flack. "You might give us away!"

"Sorry, Flack. It's my allergies," replied Tubbs, wiping his nose. "Why did we have to kidnap the cat anyway?"

"Because, you moron," replied Flack irritably. "Cats are much easier to steal than dogs, and they are a lot less trouble too."

"But why do we do it anyway?" asked Tubbs rather stupidly.

"Because everybody's got to make a living!" snapped Flack.

"But we took the kitty from a sweet little old lady who was all alone, and what if she can't afford to pay the ransom?" asked Tubbs.

"She will," Flack assured him. "Or she can kiss her kitty-cat goodbye!" he laughed evilly. "And that is why we are getting off here at riverside."

Nose Marie felt she had heard, and smelt, quite enough. So she quickly and quietly crawled back down the hall and into the pets compartment again where she found the others waiting for her.

"Did you get the biscuits?" asked Scrounger.

Nose Marie ignored him and quickly went on to explain what she had just found out. "We have bad news aboard this train! You remember Flack and Tubbs, those two dog-nappers?"

"How could I forget them?" asked Cooler. "I still have the scars from our last encounter."

"Well, they're here now! They escaped!" exclaimed Nose Marie.

"Oh no!" they all said unison.

"Now what poor, unfortunate pup have they napped this time?" asked Scrounger with a growl.

"Actually they've got a cat with them this time, and it isn't theirs," said Nose Marie.

"Well, it won't be with them for long if we have anything to do with it!" said Cooler taking a firm stand.

"But I thought we only rescued dogs and pups?" inquired Scrounger.

"Well, from here on we rescue all animals, whether their puppies or purries... maybe we need a new name... but that will have to wait. Now we'll wait until they get off at the next stop and then we'll corner them and release the cat," declared Cooler.

So they waited until they began to feel the train slowing down and the whistle becoming louder as it neared another town, and then they sneaked out of the pets compartment and crept through the corridor, being led by Nose Marie, and stood outside of the car where Flack and Tubbs were. Then once the train had almost come to a stop, Flack pushed open the door in the side of the wall and slung the bag containing the stolen cat over his shoulder and dragged Tubbs out with him. The pound puppies seized their chance at once and jumped out after them immediately, barking and growling all the way.

"Oh no! It's those mutts again!" exclaimed Flack as they were surrounded.

"This is bad, right?" asked Tubbs befuddled.

Cooler jumped up and snatched the sack out of Flack's grasp with his teeth.

"Tubbs, you idiot! Get them!" screamed Flack.

"Huh?" asked Tubbs as he bent down to try to grab Cooler and the sack, only to be bitten on his backside by Scrounger. He let out a yell of pain as he dropped the sack and it opened up and the cat inside was released.

Cooler barked to the others that there was no time to lose and so they all ran away from the two bandits, with the cat following them.

"Tubbs, you butthead! After them!" screamed Flack as he and Tubbs, while rubbing his backside, chased after the dogs and cat.

The Pound Puppies were chased into the town and they ran up the steps of an old apartment building. Without pausing for breath, they ran inside and closed the door behind them, thinking they had managed to escape from the two scoundrels.

"Thank you, Pound Puppies!" exclaimed the Cat gratefully. "You have surely saved my life!"

"Think nothing of it," replied Cooler modestly. "We're just doing our job. How did you get caught by them, anyway?"

"I was out in my yard playing with a ball of yarn when they came up to me and dropped that sack over my head," replied the cat. "My name is Whiskers by the way and I belong to a Mrs. Finley and she lives on 34th street."

"Why that isn't far from here!" exclaimed Barkerville. "We'll get you home."

Just then the door flew open and in stepped Flack and Tubbs wearing angry scowls. The Pound Puppies were cornered and it seemed they had nowhere to go so they just backed up into the wall and huddled close together.

Flack took out a box of matches and then a packet of cigarettes. He lit the match on his finger and touched it to the cigarette, lighting it. "Now hand over the pussy, you mangy, pathetic pooches!" he snarled threateningly. "Or I'll take this and burn you!" he held the cigarette out in front of them and slowly advanced towards them while Tubbs came up beside him holding out a sack with which to capture them in.

Barkerville heard whimpering beside him, he looked and saw it was Nose Marie for she could smell the smoke from the cigarette coming ever closer to her. He really hated to see her and also his other friends in such danger and he felt he couldn't just stand and cower and let harm come to them. He couldn't! And then he did a very ungentlemanly, yet very brave thing, he sprang at Flack and bit him on the arm which held the cigarette.

Flack hollered out in pain and dropped the cigarette he was holding in his left hand, and also the small box of matches he was holding in his right hand. The two objects fell to the floor on top of each other and once the matches were struck by the lit cigarette they were set ablaze and burned fiercely.

"Now look what you've done!" shouted Flack. "But it will be your own demise for you're the ones who will be smoked out of here, not us!"

And so saying he pulled Tubbs with him and left the building before the dogs and cat could escape with them, not that they wanted to be with them.

"Oh dear! What will we do now?" cried Nose Marie. "The smoke is getting stronger and soon we won't be able to breath!"

"Now I'll never find my family again!" sobbed Rugby.

Barkerville could see the seriousness of the situation and spoke up without losing his composure. "I take full responsibility for this, and I say we find an exit and then find a telephone where we can call the fire department."

"But how can we get out!?" exclaimed Nose Marie.

"This is an apartment building and there are always plenty of air vents in them, we just have to look around for them," Barkerville replied easily.

And so they found an air vent in the floor and they squeezed themselves into it, one after the other, and they crawled through the tunnel and eventually they saw a bit of light in the darkness up ahead and knew they had reached the other end. They all pushed together and pulled off the covering of the new air vent and crawled out of it and into a completely new room with no smoke in sight.

"We're saved!" exclaimed Rugby.

"For the time being it seems," said Barkerville seriously. "But the fire downstairs must be fuming furiously by now, so let's not waste time."

So saying he went to the telephone that was resting on a small end table nearby and quickly dialed the fire department and he explained their situation without giving away that he and everyone with him was a dog with a cat in tow.

Before long they heard the siren of the fire engine roaring up the street and parking in front of the building they were in. They quickly went to the window and barked and howled and waved to get the attention of the fire fighters. They saw the men look up and spot them, and they also noticed the fire dog whom they knew from the time Nabbit had brought him to the pound and he had lost his memory and they helped him get it back.

"Look! There's a bunch of dogs up there! We better get them down!" exclaimed one fire man.

So they unsheathed their ladder and sent one of them up and one by one the dogs and cat were rescued.

Once they were all safe on the ground they met with their friend, Pepper the firehouse dog.

"Hello, Pound Puppies! I didn't think I'd see you again! Not this soon!" exclaimed Pepper, wagging his tail in delight.

"We're happy to see you, too, Pepper," said Barkerville, tipping his hat.

"But how did you get up in that building where there's a fire on the first floor?" asked Pepper.

"We ran in there to escape from two escaped criminals," explained Cooler. "You see, they had kidnapped this cat here, Whiskers, and we had to save her. We found out about them on the train we were just on on our way to bring Rugby here home to his family. Now we have another friend we need to bring home."

"I know where Whiskers lives!" exclaimed Pepper brightly.


	4. Chapter 4

They followed the address Pepper had given them and it led them to a drab apartment building and when Whiskers mentioned his owner lived on the first floor they left her at the doorstep and then rang the doorbell and his behind the wall as they waited.

Moments later the door was opened and a short stature woman with white hair came out wearing a shawl. The moment she spotted the gray and white cat on the doorstep her careworn face lit up and tears of relief rose to her eyes.

"As I live and breathe! Whiskers! You've come home!" she gasped as she scooped up the cat into her arms which purred contentedly as she began rocking it like a baby.

"Well, that takes care of one problem so far," said Cooler with satisfaction. Then noticing Rugby's envious onlooking he added, "And soon enough you will be reunited with your owner too."

"Well, where will we go now?" asked Rugby.

"Why, we take the next train out of here of course, and the next one after that if need be," replied Cooler earnestly.

"What if we should run into Flack and Tubbs on the way?" asked Rugby fearfully.

"A risk we must take," said Barkerville. "But if we do come in contact with the two scoundrels we will have the Nose to tell us when and what to do," he added with a warm look towards Nose Marie.

They headed in the direction of the next nearest train station. They had not gone far when they suddenly heard a raucous of very loud and very frantic barking. They turned a corner in its direction and they found a large collie dog sitting beside of a manhole and barking up a storm.

"Here now, what are you barking about, old girl?" asked Barkerville as they approached.

The collie stopped barking and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "My master has fallen down this hole and he is trapped. I am trying to call for help here."

They looked down the hole and underneath the far side to the left they could see the head of a young boy who was clinging onto the edge barely with one hand.

"Why don't you just run off and go find help though?" inquired Scrounger.

"Because he needs me to look after him," the collie replied.

"Well then you just stay here and keep calling while we'll go find more help for you," said Cooler.

And so they did and they ran down the street barking almost like mad dogs. Cooler was running alongside Scrounger while Howler was running alongside Rugby while Barkerville was running alongside Nose Marie and when they came to an intersection they split up.

Suddenly Nose Marie stopped and sniffed at the air.

"What is it, dear girl?" asked Barkerville.

"I smell... I smell... doughnuts!" she exclaimed triumphantly.

"Doughnuts?" inquired Barkerville in puzzlement.

"Don't you see? When there's doughnuts there's almost always a policeman, and when there's a policeman there has to be a police dog!" she exclaimed.

"Why by Jove, my girl! You are brilliant!" exclaimed Barkerville in admiration.

So they followed Nose Marie's sniffer which led them to a coffee shop in the window of which they could sure enough see a blue uniformed policeman and laying beside his chair was a great German shepherd wearing a large collar with a badge on it.

"Well, there's only one thing to do now, old girl," said Barkerville and Nose Marie nodded in agreement.

So then the two of them began barking and jumping up and down in front of the window and got the attention of the policeman and his dog. As the two came outside they continued with their jumping and barking trying to get him to understand there was an emergency.

"What is all the commotion about?" inquired the policeman. "Oh dear, I wish I could understand the language of dogs."

However his German shepherd could understand and he got the message from them and so he barked loudly to get his master's attention and then tugged on his pant leg a moment before he ran off with Barkerville and Nose Marie.

"Hey! Wait up Rusty!" exclaimed the policeman as he rushed after them.

When they got back to the collie and the manhole they saw that she had attracted some attention and the other Pound Puppies had returned with more help.

"What is this all about? Could someone tell me?" demanded the policeman.

"There is a little boy trapped down in the manhole, for Heavens sake!" exclaimed someone in the crowd.

The policeman, now looking alarmed, went over to the manhole and peered down inside where he saw the boy in question.

"Help! Help! I want my mommy!" the little boy yelled up to him.

"Hold on, son! We'll get you out," said the policeman. He then took out his walkie talkie and called for backup.

Soon the fire department arrived as well as an ambulance and the boy's parents. Then one of the member's of the fire team brought a ladder down the manhole and climbed down far enough until he reached the little boy and then climbed out with him in his arms. Then the boy, who was quite dirty and gasping for air was laid down on the stretcher the ambulance had brought and the medic team gave him an oxygen mask.

Once the boy's parents were assured he was going to be alright they went up to the policeman and thanked him vigorously. But he said, "The true hero of the day is the dogs, not just my Rusty but also the boy's dog and the two that came barking at me to get me to come."

So then the reporters who had just arrived began taking pictures of all of the dogs gathered there.

As soon as he could the police dog came away and spoke to the Pound Puppies. "Tell me, is there anything me and my master can do to repay you?"

"Well, there are these two lowly scoundrels who go by the names of Flack and Tubbs and kidnap innocent pets such as dogs and cats and hold them for ransom. They just escaped from jail and we had the displeasure of meeting with them a while ago."

"Well, they must be on their way out of town now or else still in the city somewhere," replied the police dog. "I promise we'll keep an eye out for them and put out a dragnet for these two vandals."

"Good show old dog," said Barkerville. "Now could you kindly direct us to the nearest train station as we need to get our friend Rugby here home as soon as we can."

Rusty told them the way to the train station and as they entered it they once again saw throngs of people lining up as passengers and they once again climbed secretly into the back of the train's baggage cars. As they were waiting for the train to start moving Nose Marie began sniffing at the air.

"What is it dear girl?" asked Barkerville with concern.

"I think I smell something familiar," she replied still sniffing.

They looked around the corner at the side of the car and all they could see was the train conductor checking the tickets of an elderly couple. One was a short man with a very long beard and the other looked like a fat woman in a wheelchair.

"Hurry up, sonny!" the man with the beard demanded in a nasally voice. "My wife needs to get to Pennsylvania as soon as possible! She's in need of an operation there!"

The woman in the wheelchair then let out a series of gagging coughs as she clutched at her chest.

Nose Marie sniffed again and the sighed. "I don't know what it is. My senses seemed somehow to be dulled."


	5. Chapter 5

Night fell shortly after the Pound Puppies boarded the back of the train and they all fell asleep.

"Good night, Scrounger," said Cooler.

"Good night, Cooler.

"Good night, Barky," said Cooler.

"Goodnight, sir," said Barkerville.

"Good night, Nose," said Cooler.

"Nighty-night, Cooler," said Nose Marie.

"Good night, Rugby," said Cooler.

"I can't sleep," said Rugby restlessly.

"Don't worry. I know just the thing," said Nose Marie. She held Rugby close to her and began to sing a sweet lullaby to him.

Nose Marie's lullaby not only lulled Rugby to sleep but all the other dogs too. The next morning they all awoke at the break of dawn and soon they all realized how hungry they were.

"Gosh, yesterday I only ate once and now I feel famished," Scrounger complained.

"I could use a bite of something myself," agreed Cooler. "So let's get off at the first place where we see civilization."

They rode on in silence for a few minutes longer and then Nose Marie suddenly twitched her nose and stepped to the edge of the train.

"I say, what's wrong, Nose Marie?" asked Barkerville with concern.

"I think I smell some new things," she replied as she continued to sniff at the air outside of them. "It smells like... fresh cut grass... and hay... and vegetables... and cows... and..." she wrinkled her nose. "Manure!"

"Why, then we must be approaching a farm," exclaimed Barkerville. "A most observant nose you have, my dear."

"And when there is a farm there is a farmhouse, and when there is a farmhouse there is always plenty of food to go around!" announced Scrounger.

Moments later the sight of the farm that was mentioned came into view and they could a good sized farmhouse next to a big red barn next to a large cornfield with a scarecrow wearing overalls and a pumpkin for a head in the middle of it. As soon as they were close enough to it they all went up to the edge of the floor of the back of the train and one by one they all jumped off from it and landed on the soft mowed lawn before the farm.

As they ventured onto the land they heard the distinct crowing of a rooster standing on the top of the barn. "Cock-a-doodle-do! Wake up! It's a new day!" it crowed.

"Good morning, Cocky," said Cooler cheerfully to the rooster. "We're new in town, just rode in, and we were hoping you could tell us where we could get some chow."

"Sure," replied the rooster. "The owners always give out a big hearty breakfast to their two sheepdogs and their puppies at this time of day."

"Thanks, and where can go to have some of this breakfast?" asked Cooler.

"In the barn," replied the rooster just before he went back to his crowing.

So they headed into the big red barn with the white door which was open and inside they found one small puppy with shaggy snowy white hair with a single pink bow above her left ear.

"Hello, my dear," said Barkerville as he courteously tipped his hat to her. "But, if I may ask, where are your parents and your brothers and sisters?"

"My name is Lulu," she replied. "And Ma and Pa are usually out rounding up the sheep around this time and my brother Willie usually comes with them. And my brother Marty is probably out in the pigpen playing with the pigs. And my brother Tommy is probably out chasing the chickens. And my brother Joey is probably out playing with his new ball."

"So it seems we have four young pups to gather together before we can have our breakfast," said Cooler.

"Well, what are we standing here for? Let's go find them quickly," said Scrounger anxiously.

So they left the barn and the first thing they cam to was a shed where a few horses were kept and they stopped in front of them.

"Hello, my good man," said Barkerville politely addressing a large black stallion. "Have you seen any of four puppies come by your way this morning?"

The horse gave a neigh as he replied, "Why, yes I have. Two of them went this way," he turned his head to the left, "and two of them went that way," he turned his head to the right."

"Thanks," said Cooler. "We've got to go tell them breakfast is ready."

"Of course," added the horse. "The puppies may not be here to have breakfast for much longer."

"What? But why ever not?" asked Barkerville in puzzlement.

"Ah, it's one of the oldest and saddest farm stories ever told," said the horse with a sigh. "The farmers get two sheepdogs who mate and have five adorable puppies who bring love and joy to their home, and then they find they can no longer afford to feed all of them when they get behind on their mortgage fee and end up having to sell the pups to complete strangers."

"Oh dear," said Nose Marie. "That sound awful. Can't anything be done about it?"

"Well, there is an old tale of a one-hundred year old box full of treasure hidden somewhere on the property," said the horse thoughtfully. "But no one seems to be willing to believe in it enough to dig it up."

"I bet I could probably find it for them," said Nose Marie.

"I bet you could, too, old girl," said Barkerville.

"Well, they'll be plenty of time for digging after we've eaten," said Scrounger.

"Alright," said Cooler. "Now me and Scrounger and Howler will go this way," he pointed to the left, "and Barkerville and Nose and Rugby will go that way," he pointed to the right.

So they then divided into the two search parties to look for the puppies. Barkerville, Nose Marie, and Rugby soon came to a long wide wooden pin that was full of mud and large pigs. Just as they approached it they heard a tiny yipping coming from somewhere inside it. They stood up and looked over the pen and found a puppy rolling all around in the mud.

"Hello there! Is your name Marty, by any chance?" Barkerville called out to him.

The puppy stopped rolling around and looked at them. "Yes it is. What do you want?" he asked.

"We just want to let you know that breakfast is ready now," said Nose Marie.

"Oh. Okay," said Marty as he started to come out of the pigpen dripping in mud.

"Why do you like to roll around in that stuff?" asked Nose Marie curiously.

"I don't know," said Marty. "I just love the feel of mud soaking through my fur and rubbing into my skin." He looked at Rugby. "You want to try it?"

"Um... No thanks," said Rugby hesitantly. "I think I'll pass."

Then with Marty now with them they went on to look for the other puppy. They soon came upon a large green meadow in which they heard a raucous of baaing sheep which was followed by two sets of barking, one was loud and deep and one was tiny high-pitched. They then noticed two sheep dogs one big and one small trying to round up the sheep flock.

"Come on, you big woolly bags! Stay together!" called out the big sheepdog.

"Hello there, good sir," said Barkerville as they approached them. "I don't mean to intrude but I think that if you would just speak nicely to these sheep they would willingly do as you say."

The sheepdog gave him a queer look for a moment and then said, "Well, I suppose it's worth a try." He then turned back to the flock and spoke calmly. "My sheep, will you kindly stay together for me?"

"Pretty please?" added the little sheepdog.

The sheep baaed in response saying, "Why, of course, sir. If it pleases you."

The sheepdog looked impressed and turned to Barkerville. "I am indeed pleased. Thank you, good sir. What brings you here, anyway?"

"We just came to tell you breakfast is ready," said Nose Marie.

"Alright then. Come along, William Jr.," he said to his pup.

Their troupe headed back to the barn while meanwhile Cooler, Scrounger, and Howler had been looking for the other two puppies and they finally came by the chicken coop and heard a lot of loud squawking and also a loud yapping and soon they saw a large white hen scurrying around the corner flapping her wings frantically while she was being chased by a small sheepdog puppy whose tail was wagging very excitedly.

"Attention! Halt!" exclaimed Cooler.

The hen stopped running and looked up at Cooler with its chest rising and falling heavily and the puppy did the same.

"Thank you, kind sir!" exclaimed the hen gratefully. "I thought my beautiful feathers were going to be ruffled or worse, plucked out."

"I was only having a bit of fun," said the puppy sheepishly.

Cooler chuckled. "Well, you'll have plenty of time for fun after breakfast," he said.

Then with the puppy with them they went on, going around the farmhouse which took them into the backyard and there they discovered a puppy sheepdog was running around and tossing a blue ball up in the air with the tip of its nose and then jumping up and catching it in its mouth. Cooler, Scrounger, and Howler applauded for him when he had completed this performance and Howler howled in admiration.

The puppy turned around, startled at first to see them, and then he smiled and wagged his tail. "Hello. Did you come to watch me practice my new tricks?" he asked eagerly.

"We came to tell you breakfast is ready," said Cooler.

So then they headed back to the barn and met up with the other troupe who they saw had also been as successful on their mission. They went inside the barn where they found no less than seven giant sized bowls full of Kibbles and Bits waiting for them.

"Help yourselves," the mother sheepdog who had also just arrived said to the Pound Puppies. "There is plenty enough to go around for all."

"Finally! It's chow time!" exclaimed Scrounger in delight.

They all ate to their heart's content. There wasn't too much conversation around them, though they did learn that Marty was practicing to be the next sheepdog after his father's time, and Lulu was practicing to win in a dog beauty contest, and Joey was practicing to be a circus dog. Hearing the pups talk about their dreams and aspirations made the Pound Puppies feel all the more sorry about their situation, at least until Nose Marie spoke up after everyone had just about ate enough.

"So you've told us about what you want to do when you grow up. What about what you can do now? Can you dig a good hole?" she asked them.

"Oh yes!" they all exclaimed.

"Good. Well, there is a treasure buried somewhere on this farm and if I manage to sniff it out do you think you can manage to dig it up?" she asked hopefully.

"Oh yes! I can dig it up in no time!" exclaimed Marty very eagerly.

"I want to dig it up too!" exclaimed Willie excitedly.

"I do, too!" added Joey

"So do I," added Tommy.

"What about me?" asked Lulu?"

"Girls can't dig?" said Marty.

"Can too!" Lulu protested.

"Hey now all you pups pipe down!" said Cooler. "You can all dig up the treasure. In fact we should all dig it up together as I don't know how deep it's buried."

The puppies all cheered and then they all hurried outside and Nose Marie at once put her nose to the ground and sniffed at the ground very thoroughly. She covered every inch of the farmland and they followed her around for more than an hour before she finally stopped at a large sycamore tree and exclaimed excitedly,

"It's here! It's here! I can smell gold! I'd know the scent anywhere."

"Well done, old girl," Barkerville praised. "Now, dogs and pups, let us dirty our paws!"

And so they did and they dug and dug and dug deeper and deeper into the earth and mud for almost an hour before they finally hit on something hard and solid. Then all together they lifted out of the ground a dirt covered oak box which they found was locked securely.

"Well, we can't open it," said the father sheepdog. "But our master can."

So he took the box in his mouth and went up to the farmhouse and dropped it at the doorstep and then he began howling until the farmer came to the door and found the box.

"Well, now what have you dug up, William?" he said as he examined the box in fascination. He gave the box a slight shake and heard something rattling around inside it. "Could this be what I think it is?" he said, wondering aloud. "I'll go get my hammer and see if it is!"

And he did and broke open the box's lid and opening it it was revealed inside to be filled with Spanish gold.

Tears of joy sprang to his eyes. "There is more than enough in here to pay off the mortgage! It looks like we won't have to sell the puppies after all."


	6. Chapter 6

"So do you really have to leave?" asked Joey as the Pound Puppies said goodbye to the sheepdog pups.

"Yes we do," said Cooler. "Our friend Rugby here needs badly to go to his family and it's our job to see that he does."

"But will you come back and visit us sometime?" asked Lulu hopefully.

"Sure we will," Cooler said smiling.

"Take care, pups," said Scrounger.

"Bye-bye, darlings," said Nose Marie.

"Cheerio, little chaps," said Barkerville.

Then they left the farm with the pups yipping and yapping their goodbyes to them. They walked on for hours and hours and were quickly becoming tired and hungry again.

"Are we anywhere near my home yet?" asked Rugby rather impatiently.

"We're getting there, Rugby," Cooler assured him.

"Hey, I'm all pooped out, if you'll pardon the expression," said Scrounger wearily.

"I could sure use a rest, myself," added Nose Marie.

"And the nearest train station isn't for another few miles yet," said Barkerville, panting slightly.

"No, but look up there," said Cooler, pointing up the road ahead of them where a large white van was parked by the curbside. "You see that big van up there? It's owners will probably arrive soon and we may get another ride to further reach our destination, and maybe even something to eat if they have it."

"Good show, old boy," said Barkerville, praising his cleverness.

So they all rushed up to the parked van and lifted open the back and climbed into it. Once inside they found many peculiar items stashed away in the compartment.

"Look at this old cuckoo clock," said Nose Marie.

"And this old Asian mirror," said Scrounger.

"And here I do believe is an Oriental music box," said Barkerville.

"Why, these are all antiques," observed Cooler. "And priceless ones, too."

"But what are they doing in here?" asked Rugby curiously.

"I suppose this van could belong to antique dealers and this is where their store the new stuff they just got," suggested Cooler.

Just then they heard the sound of approaching footsteps coming up to the van.

"Shh, everyone keep down low," whispered Cooler.

They all crouched down low and watched as two figures came up to the van. They looked like an elderly couple, a man who was quite thin, and woman who was quite fat and each were walking with a cane.

"I get the feeling we've seen that old couple somewhere before," whispered Cooler.

Then the old couple opened the van's doors on either side and climbed into it.

Nose Marie sniffed suspiciously. "They smell familiar, too. And kind of strange."

Just then, much to their astonishment, the old man pulled off his beard and the old woman took off her wig and revealed that she was really a man and the Pound Puppies realized much to their horror that these two disguises were none other than Flack and Tubbs.

"It was a clever trick we pulled disguising ourselves as oldies at the train station, huh Flack?" said Tubbs smirking.

"It sure was," replied Flack with a more sinister smirk. "After all, no one would dare harm a sweet little old lady in a wheelchair and her husband. But what was even more clever was ripping off this van at the car lot and then these old pieces of junk from that antiquity shop down town. Once that old man finds the ransom note he'll owe us every last penny he's got, that is if he doesn't have heart failure first." Here Flack gave an evil nasally laugh.

"Why, those fiends!" Nose Marie muttered underneath her breath. She growled angrily in their direction.

Tubbs blinked as he glanced behind him. "What was that, Flack? It sounded like a growl."

"Eh, probably just your stomach," said Flack dismissively.

Flack then put the stolen key in the ignition of the van and started driving off.

"What are we going to do now, Cooler?" asked Rugby fearfully.

"Well, I guess we'll just have to ride with them to wherever they take us," replied Cooler uneasily. "And then escape from them as fast as we can."

"But I don't just want to escape," declared Nose Marie furtively. "I want those two crooks to be taught a lesson."

They then rode on in silence as Flack and Tubbs drove to their hideout which was an on flat one room apartment building. Once there they stopped and got out of the van and went around to the back to gather up their loot.

"This pays so much better than animal napping," Flack said with satisfaction as he opened up the back. He was then completely flabbergasted to discover none other than the six Pound Puppies who had foiled their plans twice before crouching in the compartment.

"What the...? How in the heck did they get in there?" Flack exclaimed.

"I don't know, Flack," said Tubbs. "I guess they must have sneaked into the back."

Flack clenched his teeth and fists. "Well, we won't them ruin our scheme this time! Come on, Tubbs nab them!"

Flack and Tubbs each made a grab at the Pound Puppies who bit and scratched at them both as they handled roughly but Flack and Tubbs had been expecting this and paid no mind to it as they gathered them all up and carried them into their hideout where they threw them into the closet and locked tightly shut.

"There that takes care of those mutts!" said Flack as he rubbed off his hands.

"What are we going to do with them, Flack?" asked Tubbs.

"We'll take good care of them," said Flack. "We'll rub foam over their teeth and then call the pound and have them take them away to be put to sleep for good!" He gave another wicked nasally laugh.

Inside the closet the Pound Puppies had heard of their plans and were all quite frightened, especially Rugby.

"What are we going to do now?" he asked, shaking like a leaf.

"Well, I believe we must do what any dogs in our situation would do," said Barkerville. "That is we must bark and howl and yelp until we attract someone's attention to free us."

"I couldn't have said it better myself, Barky," said Cooler.

So they did so and they all began barking and howling and yelping a terrible racket together that badly wracked the ears of Flack and Tubbs.

"Gee whiz, Tubbs!" exclaimed Flack yelling over the noise. "Can't we get those mutts to shut up!"

"Gee, I don't know, Flack," said Tubbs as he put his hands over his ears. "Maybe we should try feeding them?"

"What?! And waste our food on mangies like these? Never!" shouted Flack.

Meanwhile outside of the apartment Billy Boskins, who was the town paperboy, was riding his bicycle down the sidewalk and stopping at houses to deliver the papers. He stopped in front of Flack and Tubbs building and took one of the papers and walked up to the building and rang the doorbell.

Within moments Flack and Tubbs answered the door. "Yeah, what do you want, kid?" asked Flack in an annoyed way.

"I've just come by to deliver the paper," said Billy as he handed the paper to him. "I saw your van parked outside and I assumed someone must have moved in here."

"Oh yeah, we did just move in," said Flack rather uneasily as he took the paper from Billy. "Now get lost, kid!"

"Hey, what's that noise?" asked Billy, thinking he heard dogs barking from somewhere behind them.

"Oh, that was just me," Tubbs quickly lied. "You see, I have a cold that gives me heartburn." He then clutched at his chest and made loud howling and coughing sounds trying to cover up the sound of the Pound Puppies noise.

"It sounds more like dogs to me," protested Billy.

"Ridiculous! We don't have any dogs!" Flack snapped at him.

As he said this Billy glanced over to the side and could have sworn he saw a tiny paw reach out from underneath the closet door.

"Are you sure you don't have any dogs?" he asked suspiciously.

"We're positive, kid! Now beat it!" Flack said almost shouting at him just before he slammed the door in his face.

Billy shuddered slightly and then turned to leave. He went to his bicycle which he had leaned against the van and as he did he happened to look in through one of the side windows and saw all the many antiques in the back compartment. He felt there was something peculiar about all this and suddenly he had the urge to look at the papers he was carrying. He took the last one out of the basket of his bicycle and unfolded it to look at the headlines, and there he found what he was looking for. It said on the front page that the town's antique shop had been robbed of many of its most priceless items and that the owner was very heartsick over the loss.

"Then they must be the thieves who took them," Billy said to himself.

He knew just what to do now. He took out his cellphone from his back pocket and dialed 9-11.

"Hello, Police, this is Billy Boskins and I've found the thieves who robbed the antique shop and I'm standing right at their hideout," he then told them address of where he was and put away his cell phone.

It was a short time later when the police came up the street. Two officers got out of the police car and stepped up to Billy.

"Where are they?" asked the first officer.

"They're in there," Billy said pointing inside.

The officers then wasted no time in breaking open the apartment door and surrounding Flack and Tubbs who were right inside.

"Freeze!" commanded the officers and Flack and Tubbs were so shocked to see them they did indeed freeze.

"You are under arrest for theft of valuable items," the officers continued as they each took Flack and Tubbs by the hands and handcuffed them behind their backs. "You have a right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be tried against you in a court of law."

Just then the officers heard the Pound Puppies barking coming from inside the closet.

"Well, what have we here?" said one of the officers as he walked up to the closet and broke off the lock on it and opening it he set the Pound Puppies free. "So, you're dog nappers as well, huh?"

"I thought I heard dogs in there," exclaimed Billy as the Pound Puppies ran up to him and began licking his face in thanks.

"I hate dogs!" growled Flack under his breath. "If I ever see another dog again it will be too soon!"


	7. Chapter 7

Once the Pound Puppies had seen Flack and Tubbs carried off to jail they started once again on their journey.

"Where do we go now?" asked Nose Marie.

"Well, we've finally made it to Ohio," said Barkerville. "So now we should keep going South and we should sooner or later come to Rugby's new home."

So they headed South and kept on for the rest of the day. When evening was approaching and it was beginning to darken they slowed down as once again hunger and fatigue began to take over them.

"Hey, I'm hungry," complained Scrounger, "and if I don't have something to eat pretty soon I'm gonna fall."

"I feel the same way," agreed Cooler.

'Well, we're heading towards an alleyway now and so hopefully we'll find a restaurant soon with a nice owner who will give us some scraps," said Barkerville.

So they continued on down the alley and it wasn't long before they saw many large cardboard boxes were crowded against buildings, some stacked on top of the other. Altogether it looked like a cardboard box city.

"Would you look at this place," said Cooler as he observed their surroundings. "It looks like a miniature version of New York made out of cardboard."

"It does indeed," said Barkerville.

"Who do you suppose built it?" asked Nose Marie.

"Maybe some kids built it for a secret meeting place," suggested Scrounger.

Then suddenly one of the boxes in front of them opened up and out stepped a tall and skinny brown Dachshund who ran up to them extending his paw.

"Hello, and welcome to the all dogs alley, folks," he said heartily. "My name is Jamie and I run most of the things around here as my family was one of the first to live here."

"Do you mean to say you live here and you have no owner," asked Barkerville.

"Well, yes I do," said Jamie. "As a matter of fact, none of the dogs who live here are owned by anyone. But that is only because we like it that way. You see, we believe that no human can ever truly own a dog and so we have built this place for ourselves to provide for own needs and we and the ones who came before us have been living here happily and contentedly for a long time."

"So these boxes are your homes?" asked Cooler.

Jamie nodded. "Yep, there doesn't come any better abode than them."

"And how do you get your food around here?" asked Scrounger.

"We usually eat whatever the people who live in the houses nearby throw away," said Jamie. "Though we also occasionally get some more gourmet stuff from this guy who speaks mostly French in this restaurant up the street."

"And what do you do for entertainment?" asked Barkerville.

"We have many ways," replied Jamie. "We all come bringing our own songs, and stories, and jokes, and we're all just one big family caring for each other."

"Gosh, I never knew such a place as this existed," admitted Cooler. "Though I must admit it is a fine establishment. We also don't have any owners but we live in a place called the City Pound where we have jobs of finding homes for puppies who don't have them, as well as returning lost ones to their families, such as our friend Rugby here. We're just passing through and were wondering if you could spare us some place where we could eat and sleep for the night."

"Why, of course," said Jamie. "There is a fine place not far from here called the Doggone Motel where they serve only the best of the best food we have around here and provide comfy quarters and also quality entertainment."

"Sounds like a good deal to me," said Barkerville cordially.

"And me too," agreed Scrounger, rubbing his stomach.

"I'm in," said Cooler. "So lead the way, Jamie."

So Jamie led them to what looked like a tower of multi cardboard boxes stacked on top of the other with the motel's name painted in the center of them. As they arrived a dog wearing a doorman's hat escorted them inside where they signed in.

Then they crawled into a few more adjoined boxes where they entered the restaurant where they served today's special, cold meatloaf. Then they went into the lounge area where they were entertained by a small band of dogs, a terrier who played a drum, a Doberman who played a tambourine, a cocker spaniel who played a horn, with a white poodle wearing a necklace of bottle caps around her neck singing "You Ain't Nothin' But a Hound Dog." Then they were shown to their rooms where they turned in for the night.

The next day the said goodbye to Jamie and started on their way again. It wasn't long before they came to a green sign by the road which said, NOW ENTERING COLUMBUS.

"Why, I do believe we've just entered into Rugby's family's city," said Barkerville triumphantly.

"So now it's up to the Nose to find out where they live," said Cooler turning to Nose Marie.

"You can count on me, Cooler," assured Nose Marie. She took a good sniff of Rugby and then headed into a Northwesterly direction with the others following close behind her.

They walked on and on for a long time and as the sun rose higher in the sky they felt the need to stop to rest and so they did and sat down by a curb behind a dumpster.

"It seems like we've been walking all day," said Cooler tiredly. "Can you tell us how much farther it is to the home of Rugby's family?" he asked Nose Marie.

Nose Marie sniffed at the air, then sniffed at it again, and again. Then finally with a slightly troubled expression she said, "It's close, just a few more miles or so."

"I was afraid of that," said Scrounger wearily.

They started off again at a brisk pace still heading Northwest. Shortly after Nose Marie stopped them and began sniffing at the air again.

"It's this way," she said and led them into the Westerly direction. They all followed for they all had great confidence in her nose.

After a while of heading in the new direction Nose Marie stopped them and sniffed at the air for a long moment and then said, "This way."

"But... uh... didn't we just come from that way," asked Cooler uneasily.

Nose Marie looked at him in surprise and then she began sniffing at the air all around them in every direction. Then suddenly she gasped and her eyes went wide and she put her hand up to her face and nose as she exclaimed, "I can't smell anything!"

The others all looked at her in shock. "What?!" they all exclaimed in unison.

"I don't know where to go," Nose Marie said despairingly. "My nose has failed."

"What nonsense, old girl," said Barkerville. "You're nose has and always will be the finest in all the Pound and it's never failed."

"But it has," said Nose Marie with her eyes beginning to water. "I think I'm losing my sense of smell, if I haven't lost it already, because I can't smell anything except air which doesn't smell like anything."

"Oh no, impossible, my dear," said Barkerkille. "No dog can ever really lose their sense of smell, especially not a bloodhound."

"But we're lost now, and it's all because of my nose," Nose Marie wailed. Tears fell from her eyes and she let out a long howl.

"There, there now," said Barkerville coming up to her and putting his arm around her. "Your nose must just be exhausted is all, you've been smelling so many different things ever since we started on this journey and now it is just wanting a rest. Here," he added as he took out a handkerchief and lent it to her. "Maybe this will help."

She took the handkerchief and first wiped her eyes and then she blew her nose heavily.

"There, now try again," said Barkerville after a few moments.

"Do you really think it will work now?" asked Nose Marie.

"I'm sure it will," he replied. "I believe in you."

Nose Marie smiled weakly and then sniffed Rugby again and then put her nose to the air and drew a long sniff. Then her eyes lit up with joy suddenly and she began to hurry forward.

"Come on, everyone!" she called to them. "We're on the right track now, I can feel it!"

They all hurried after her and she led them about half a block down and stopped at a two-story house painted a pale yellow color with a peaked roof and lace curtains in the windows.

"Is this it?" asked Rugby hopefully.

"This is it, alright," said Nose Marie. "See for yourself." She stepped up to the door and knocked on it.

Kyle Chenworth was just inside in the living room watching television when he heard the knock on the door. "I'll get it," he called to his parents.

He opened the door and at first saw no one there but then he looked down and saw a very familiar looking brown puppy. I took him a moment to register the realization of why he was so familiar.

"Rugby? Is it really you?"

Rugby yipped and jumped up against Kyle and stuck out his tongue and looked at him with the most loving and eager expression.

"Rugby, it is you!" Kyle exclaimed as his face lit up and he took Rugby into his arms so that he licked his face all over.

"Mom! Dad! Rugby's here! He found us!" Kyle called to his parents as he hurried inside.

The Pound Puppies stood by silently watching the happy reunion. "Ah, it always gets me every time to see a lost puppy find his home," sighed Cooler as he wiped a stray tear from his eye.

"I told you my nose knew where to go," said Nose Marie.

"Just like I told you, my dear," said Barkerville.


	8. Chapter 8

A few days later when they were back at the New York City Pound they were celebrating Violet Vanderfeller's birthday Scrounger was jamming out an uproarious melody on the piano and Howler was vocalizing along to it and some dogs were chowing down on the feast prepared by Chef Louis an others were dancing around on the floor with a partner including Cooler and Violet.

While all this was going on Barkerville stood next to Nose Marie beside the punch bowl and was handing her a glass of punch.

"Thank you," she said as she accepted it from him. She took a sip from it and then she looked to him and said, "There is something I've been meaning to ask you, Barky."

"And what is that, my dear?" he asked.

"When we were taking Rugby to his new home and we trapped with Flack and Tubbs what on Earth possessed you to act so bravely and so out of character and bite Flack?"

Barkerville thought about this for a moment then he gazed into Nose Marie's dark brown eyes and replied, "I'm not really sure, my dear. It was just that when I saw the terror in your eyes something within me snapped, I suppose."

Nose Marie smiled. "I also want to thank you for the way you kept believing in my nose when it seemed I'd gotten us lost."

"We were never really lost, you remember?" he said to her. "After all, any dog who is lost is really just on their way home, or as my old father used to say to me."

Nose Marie chuckled lightly. "But how did you know just the right things to say to keep me believing in myself?"

"I suppose because I felt no one, especially yourself, should ever doubt your nose's tracking abilities. I mean, I don't know what we at Pound Puppy Central would do without you and you knowledgeable nose. Without you it would seem we wouldn't be able to operate at all."

"You really believe that?" Nose Marie asked as she gazed deeply into his eyes.

Barkerville nodded. "I always have," he replied. "From the moment we first met when our mission center was set up. I could see in you the heart and the nose of a true bloodhound."

Nose Marie smiled and blushed inwardly. "And I knew from the moment I met you that you were a perfect gentleman and you helped me to see that not all dogs who come from rich people are snobs. I'll always be grateful for that."

Barkerville smiled and then glanced over at Cooler and Violet as they waltzing close together on the dance floor and his heart suddenly swelled with the desire to be out there with them.

He held out his paw to Nose Marie and gestured toward the dance floor. "Would you care for a lovely dance, my dear?"

"Why, sure. I'd love to," she replied beaming.

So he took her paw in his own and led her onto the dance floor and soon they waltzing along to the tune of the piano. Gradually they began dancing closer and closer together, till their cheeks were just lightly pressed against each others.

"You know, Barky," Nose Marie whispered. "I'd always wanted to tell you I like your scent very much."

"I like yours, too," he whispered back.


End file.
